-
09/21/2009
The country’s biggest steelmaker, ArcelorMittal Ostrava, is planning to re-launch production at its third foundry according to media reports. The third foundry was closed and another two have been working at a fraction of their normal capacity after the company was hard hit by the global economic crisis and sharp downturn in demand. The business daily E15 said the steelmaker now had sufficient orders to work at around 60-75 percent of normal capacity which would involve bringing the mothballed foundry back into production from the start of 2010.
-
09/21/2009
Minister of the Interior Martin Pecina says the caretaker government should come up with a package of anti-corruption measures. Mr Pecina said measures that could be tabled include an offer of immunity or lower sentences for state witnesses in corruption cases and the use of agent provacateurs to help uncover corruption. Corruption is still a major problem according to a report by the team of government economic advisers, NERV. It pointed out recently that state engineering and infrastructure contracts are far more expensive that in West European countries because corruption was built into the construction price.
-
09/21/2009
The Czech men's tennis team has climbed to fourth place in the world rankings following its weekend semi-final Davis Cup Victory over Croatia. That represents a jump of three places from its previous seventh place. The 4-1 victory against Croatia booked them a place in December’s Davis Cup final against Spain. The higher ranking from the International Tennis Federation will help the Czechs avoid top teams when the draw for next year’s Davis Cup is made on Wednesday.
-
09/20/2009
The Czech news agency, ČTK, has reported that the Czech Foreign Minister Jan Kohout will meet for talks with US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on Monday. Mr Kohout will be in New York ahead of the 64th session of the General Assembly of the United Nations. It is not known what topics will be on the agenda in the meeting with Mrs Clinton but there is speculation they could include possible Czech cooperation on US missile defence. On Friday, Mrs Clinton said that the Czech Republic and Poland were key candidates for the placement of new mobile anti-rocket missiles planned by the US - a system which will replace a proposed radar base in the Czech Republic and rocket installation in Poland. The earlier missile defence plans were scrapped by the US this week.
In related news, the Czech delegation travelling to the US for the UN Generally Assembly session leaves on Sunday, headed by Czech President Václav Klaus.
-
09/20/2009
US Defense Secretary Robert Gates has written an opinion piece in the Sunday edition of the New York Times in which he calls the future of missile defense in Europe “secure”. The article outlines a new direction for the US after earlier plans for an advance radar in the Czech Republic, and interceptor rockets in Poland, were scrapped by the US this week. In the article, Mr Gates contends that the earlier system (aimed at defending against long-range missiles) was suitable but based on earlier technology and threat assessments. In its new plan, the US is hoping to deploy sea-based systems by 2011, followed by ground-based anti-rocket missiles later. In his op-ed, the defense secretary challenged critics who said the US had made a concession to Russia, stressing that Russian opposition to the earlier defence plans had played “no part” in his recommendation to US President Barack Obama.
-
09/20/2009
Former prime minister Miloš Zeman, who is planning on founding a new political party in the Czech Republic, has said he will not run for a seat in the lower house in the next election. He made the statement on Sunday as a guest on a popular TV debate programme, saying he was ready to chair the party being put together by supporters. Miloš Zeman retired from politics in 2002 - although he made a brief return a year later in an unsuccessful bid for the Czech presidency. Mr Zeman has cited what he called “citizens’ disgust with politicians – not politics” as being the impulse for him to come back. A recent internet poll by SANEP, has suggested most Czechs do not want to see Mr Zeman return to politics, although a majority assessed his past political actives positively.
-
09/20/2009
Two ministers from Jan Fischer’s caretaker government have said the cabinet will not link a confidence vote extending its mandate to any concrete bill for the time being: neither an austerity measures package by the finance minister, nor the state budget for 2010. Interior Minister Martin Pecina and Defence Minister Martin Barták made the comments on a Czech TV debate programme on Sunday. Social Democrat deputy leader Zdeněk Škromach reacted by saying that if the government passed the budget it would prove it had sufficient backing in the Chamber of Deputies. But Civic Democrat and former trade minister Martin Říman responded by saying the contrary: that the confidence vote should be linked to the austerity measure. The current interim government, led by Jan Fischer, originally intended to lead the country to early elections in October or November. Those were scuppered last week, when it was revealed the Social Democrats would not back the dissolution of the lower house.
-
09/20/2009
An unknown assailant has held up a bank in Uherský Brod in Moravia for the third time, the police revealed on Sunday. The latest robbery, took place on Friday at noon, with the armed perpetrator making off with tens of thousands of crowns. The man, who is estimated as being between the age of 35-40 and is of slim build, was recognised as the same man by the teller. The earlier hold-ups, also at gunpoint, took place in January and March of this year. A closed-circuit camera outside the bank on Friday recorded images of the perpetrator.
-
09/20/2009
A two-day military show near Ostrava, NATO DAYS 2009, has wrapped up, after being visited by tens of thousands of visitors. On Saturday viewers were able to see F-16s in flight, as well as to get a close-up look from outside and inside the C-5 Galaxy: one of the largest commercially built military aircraft in the world. Czech flyers have also taken part in the show, flying JAS-39C Gripens in what is the largest air force and armed forces show in Europe.
-
09/20/2009
The Czech Republic’s tennis players will face defending champion Spain in the final of the Davis Cup. On Saturday Spain took an unassailable 3:0 lead over Israel, while the Czech Republic won again over Croatia. In the doubles on Saturday at the seaside town of Porec, Czech players Tomáš Berdych and Radek Štepánek made swift work of Marin Cilic and Lovro Zovko, after having won closely fought singles matches a day earlier. The Czechs have played in just two finals before, winning once, in 1980. This year marks the first time the players have made it to the final representing the Czech Republic (and not Czechoslovakia). The Davis Cup final will be played in Spain in December; sources say the match will most likely be played on clay.
Pages
- « první
- ‹ předchozí
- …
- 5452
- 5453
- 5454
- 5455
- 5456
- 5457
- 5458
- 5459
- 5460
- …
- následující ›
- poslední »